Baltic Region Heritage Committee celebrates its 25 years of activities in Gdańsk
The Baltic Region Heritage Committee (BRHC), established by the initiative of Ministers of Culture of the Baltic Sea Region in 1997, started its activities in 1998. This year marks the Committee's 25th anniversary, which was celebrated in September in Gdańsk, in connection with the 8th Baltic Sea Region Cultural Heritage Forum held at the National Maritime Museum.
The Forum, also celebrating the 20th anniversary of the first Forum organised in Gdańsk in 2030, gathered around 100 participants from the Baltic Sea states to discuss and debate “Heritage & Crises”. It was organised jointly by the National Institute of Cultural Heritage of Poland and the National Maritime Museum in Gdańsk, in collaboration with the BRHC.
In the rich programme, experts were informed on questions related to international conventions, including the UNESCO Underwater Heritage Convention and the Hague Convention. Discussions also revolved around cultural heritage as a factor of social resilience, and emergencies, new technologies, and practices, with a special focus on heritage in Ukraine.
The presentations and discussions underlined the constant need for closer cooperation and information-sharing, flexible and quick responses to urgent issues, and the role of new technologies in addressing pressing needs in heritage valorisation and safeguarding.
During the Baltic Region Heritage Committee meeting held in connection with the Forum, three new working groups of the BRHC were established: Climate Change, Illicit traffic of cultural goods, and Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe. These groups reflect the current challenges in safeguarding. Additionally, three established working groups continue their work: Underwater heritage, Coastal culture and maritime heritage, and Contemporary architecture. These Working Groups bring together civil servants and experts to jointly tackle practical questions related to and take concrete actions in safeguarding heritage around the Baltic Sea.
Text: Pirjo Hamari, Finnish Heritage Agency, BRHC chair (2023-2024)
Photos: Bernadeta Galus